Samsung on Wednesday showed off an upcoming update to the Wi-Fi version of its Galaxy Tab 10.1 that incorporates the company's customized TouchWiz interface. It will start rolling out over the air on Friday, August 5.
The update will also add Adobe Flash Player 10.3 and a revamped Samsung Media Hub service.
The TouchWiz interface, however, is Samsung's version of Android 3.1 Honeycomb. The company promised an OS optimized for the Galaxy Tab's 10.1-inch screen and a "more intuitive" experience.
Features include Live Panel, a "magazine-like widget view" that provides quick access to weather, social updates, email, news, and photos—all on the home screen. Samsung said the layout is "completely customizable for one-touch entry into each user's most important information."
The Mini Mode Tray, meanwhile, also provides one-touch access to commonly used apps like Task Manager, Calendar, World Clock, Pen Memo, Calculator, and Music—all of which overlay in a pop-up window. Want to hold on to something for later? The Clipboard feature lets users copy and paste things like photos, Web pages, or YouTube links for easy sharing via email or social-networking sites.
The lower right-hand corner of the Tab will have the Indicator Quick Panel for quick toggling of Wi-Fi access, notifications, sound, brightness, and other settings. A Photo Editor will also allow for rotating, cropping, and color adjustment, while Samsung's Social Hub will aggregate social network activity.
Samsung Media Hub, meanwhile, has been redesigned for the 10.1-inch display and includes Media Hub Show, which allows for playback on a TV via an HDMI cable. Users can register and access their account on up to five devices.
The software update includes several pre-loaded apps: Amazon Music Cloud Player; Amazon Kindle; and Words with Friends. For business users, the tablet will include: full support for Exchange ActiveSync version 14; on-device encryption; Cisco VPN; Sybase MDM; and Cisco WebEx mobile conferencing.
Samsung will also add Samsung Kies 2.0 for better file-sharing capabilities, the Swype keyboard app; and mobile printing.
To get the update, log into your Samsung account on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 via this URL. Customers will then be notified when the update is available. Step-by-step instructions are also available on Samsung's Web site.
Stay tuned for a full hands-on with the TouchWiz update. Until then, see PCMag's review of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 and the slideshow below.